Rocky Road Cookies

Soft and chewy Rocky Road Cookies are rich chocolate cookies packed with gooey melted marshmallows and toasted crunchy almonds. The classic flavor combination in a cookie!

You’re going to love these at cookie exchanges for Christmas, summer bake sales, and just enjoying with your family any time of year!

I first published this rocky road cookie recipe in 2011, but it was time for an update. So, I’ve updated it with new pictures, information, and an easier to read recipe card with instructions.

If you love chocolate and marshmallows, you just have to check out my Chocolate s’more pie, Marshmallow hot fudge sauce, and chocolate marshmallow moonpies. And be sure not to miss all of my other cookie recipes.

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Please let me know if you have any questions about this recipe. I read all the comments myself and I try to help as soon as I can. I have readers from all levels of comfort and experience in the kitchen on my site, and I’ve tried to answer some of your questions already in the post. But if I’ve missed anything, please feel free to leave a comment and ask. The comments can be easily found using the orange circle on the lower left, then Join the discussion!

Fudgy Cookies

I found this drop cookie recipe via Pão e queijo blog (which, as far as I can tell means Bread and Cheese). And, she found this recipe via A Cozy Kitchen. It’s a spin-off of a Martha Stewart chocolate cookie recipe.

Pro tips for how to make these cookies

Be sure to scroll down to the printable recipe card below for full ingredient amounts and instructions.

Toast the almonds

If the slivered almonds aren’t already toasted, you’ll want to do that first. Place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat, and pop them in a preheated 350° F oven for about 5 minutes. Give them a stir, and place them back in the oven for another 3-5 minutes until they are golden brown and fragrant.

Be sure to keep an eye on them as they toast. They can go from raw to burned in no time flat.

Let the almonds cool, and give them a rough chop.

Prep work

Preheat the oven, and line your cookie sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

• Be sure to use parchment paper or a silicone mat on your baking sheet. The marshmallows can melt and stick to the pan, so it’s much easier to remove the cookies when they are baked on parchment paper.

Make the dough

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt until well combined.

• For the cocoa powder, in the original photos I used regular natural unsweetened cocoa powder. For the updated photos I used Special Dark 100% cacao powder. I love the dark color and the rich flavor. Either will work here.

In a small glass bowl, melt the chocolate chips with the butter in the microwave in 30-second increments, stirring between each. You could also do this on the stovetop in a double boiler, but the microwave is so easy.

• For the new updated photos, I used dark chocolate chips, which have more than 35% cacao. Semisweet chocolate also typically contains about 50% sugar, so the dark chocolate chips are not as sweet.

Place the chocolate and butter mixture in a large bowl, and add the sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Mix with a sturdy fork, hand mixer, or stand mixer until well combined.

I like to mix cookies with a fork instead of a stand mixer. It helps me get a little arm workout, and I don’t have to clean a machine afterwards.

Slowly mix in the flour mixture until just combined.

Fold in the mini chocolate chips, the 1 cup of marshmallows, and the chopped almonds.

Refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes or up to 3 days in advance. Please don’t skip chilling the dough. If you do, the cookies will spread too much.

Shape the dough

Using a cookie scoop, make balls of dough. Roll the dough in your hands to make a nice round compact ball, and place them on the lined cookie sheet, leaving a couple of inches of space between each one so that the cookies can spread a little.

Stick two to 3 mini marshmallows in each raw cookie, pressing down lightly. You can even add some almonds to the top if you want.

• Don’t be afraid to load them with toppings before baking. That way, when the cookies are done baking, they’ll look super appealing. That’s why pictures of cookies always look amazing, because those toppings really pull you in!

Bake the cookies

Bake about 15 minutes, or until the cookies are slightly puffy in the center but crispy around the edges, and the marshmallows have turned golden and melty.

These cookies will seem a bit soft when you take them out of the oven. They firm up as they cool, so be careful not to over bake them.

Carefully pull the tray of cookies out of the oven, and let cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes to harden. Transfer to wire rack and let cool completely.

Cookies can be stored in an airtight container on the counter at room temperature for up to 5 days.

Storing and Freezing

Cookies can be stored in an airtight container on the counter at room temperature for up to 5 days.

To freeze cookies, allow them to cool completely, place them in an airtight container in a single layer, then add a layer of parchment paper, and continue to stack them in this manner. Place them in the freezer for up to 1 month.

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